e met that morning in Jollibee Kamias. There I also met the couple, JP and Jijo who are guest from this climb coming from Andrew's side. They were a nice bunch, and I was really impressed that their 1st ever climb was Mt. Pulag via akiki with Andrew last March. Well that's saying something. There was no Bus to Nasugbu nearby so we had to ride to Pasay and rode a "Crow" bus all the way to Evercrest. Good thing traffic was smooth despite US pres. George Bush's arrival, we arrived at "Ate Fe's" eatery by almost noon and there we had our lunch. We were also warned this time that recently there had been soldiers around the area inspecting Mountaineers and their packs, letting all their stuff out of the bag so these soldiers could see if they are carrying anything illegal. It's been said that this operations started recently when they heard news that there were people disguised as mountaineers were trading arms with NPAs in the nearby areas. But despite this warning, it didn't dampen our spirit and we moved further on.
Afternoon Snack
The group's pace was quite fast. As we passed by familiar trails, I was glad that Andrew and our new companions find the unusual landscape of the mountain peaks quite appealing. Drew described it as a crocodile's teeth. And other agreed that it does look like the Swiss Alps minus the snow. The weather at that time was very cooperative. Though it was hot, the wind was enough to lessen the fatigue of the group. The other thing I noticed this time around that the flowers were all in bloom, plants were greener and the cogon grass taller and thicker which made passing through them much harder as you could not almost see your trail.
It was almost 3pm when we reached camp. Drew and I were trying to overtake this other group in front so we can secure a better camp. It turns out that camp 1 was already taken. Though there was still a lot of space there we still scouted at better camps. Since the other higher camps were already occupied we decided to stay at camp 4 which was sufficient for all of our tents.
After setting up our tents, the guys cooked some hotdogs for snacks and rested a bit. I looked at the peak and found that it was clear at the moment. I asked the guys who wants to come with me and see the sunset at the peak. I just thought that if I could see the peak now, I could stay and watch camp the next day so the others could assault the summit. Good thing Andrew finally decided to accompany me.
